LESSONS FROM FRANCE.

Wairarapa Age, Volume XXXI, Issue 9145, 22 July 1908, Page 4

LESSONS FROM FRANCE.

The entente notwithstanding it is undeniable that the Briton associat-s frivolity with the French people. The French are, however, not only not frivolous, but incredibly industrious. There are many things an Englishman may learn from the French—industry, foresight, thrift, politeness, and the application nf art to everyday life—and the greatest of these appear to be industry and economy. With limited respurces in coal and wood, with no cotton or petroleum, with a stationary population and a heavy debt, France is, says the American Consul-General in a recent report, one of thu most prosperous nations. Paris has be come the banker of Continental Europe. The intensive culture of the French agriculturist is a' revelation to the Englishman. Frenchwomen ply their needles while tending sheep, selling flowers, guarding railway crossings, or sitting behind the counters of shops, and sell their work to the great establishments. Economy with the Frenchman is second nature. He has two definite objects in life, to put aside dowries for his children, and; to save enough to allow him to retire from business. He regulates his expenditure accordingly down to the minutest detail.